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Luke: (into comlink) Yes, that’s it. Dagobah.
Luke: (into comlink) No, I’m not going to change my mind about this. (getting a little nervous) I’m not picking up any cities or technology. Massive life-form readings, though. There’s something alive down there…
Luke: (into comlink) Yes, I’m sure it’s perfectly safe for droids.
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
There’s a new Facebook page I’ve been spending my time on that you or your older kids might be interested in called What Do Engineers Do. It has links to things that are science, technology, math and engineering related, but also some just plain fun things too.
I’ve got the Watto’s Junk Shop page back up for a limited time. There is an assortment of free curriculum items available to whomever can make good use of them. Feel free to spread the word.
I’ll have a listing of new, never used curriculum items for sale sometime this week so check back again to see if there’s anything else I send your way.
R2 says that the chances of survival are 725 to 1. Actually R2 has been known to make mistakes… from time to time… Oh dear…” - C-3PO, Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
“If I sit a test I might fail it – but I’m doing what I need to do in the real world. Why would tests devised for people in classrooms matter more than results in the real world?” – Benny the Irish Polyglot, from Fluent in Three Months
That’s a pretty good argument for unschooling, as well as focusing on conversation versus grammar in a language, if I ever heard one.
Obi-Wan: “Captain Typho has more than enough men downstairs. No assassin will try that way. Any activity up here?”
Anakin: “Quiet as a tomb. I don’t like just waiting here for something to happen to her.”
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Please forgive the crazy delay. I popped in today and noticed that my last post was on July 4th. A month and a half. Geez.
So, you see here’s the thing. I got a job. A full-time job. A really full-time, on my feet all day long on a concrete floor job. A this was supposed to be a part-time, up-to-20 hours a week, filler position job, but after six days spread out over two weeks I was offered the position of store manager on July 8. A full-time, at least 40 hours a week job. Well, holy cow. I said yes, took over on July 9, and it’s been a crazy rollercoaster ever since. Have I mentioned that it’s been way too many years since that kind of non-stop on-the-go activity has been a regular part of my life? I have learned a new level of both exhaustion and sore foot pain.
On the up side, I love this job. Love, love, love it. It’s fun, it’s positive, and it’s close enough to walk or bike to. The women I work with are fun and hardworking (a great combo), the challenges are enough to keep my brain pumping along, and the feedback from my employers and customers regarding the changes I’ve been implementing have been uniformly positive.
Many other things have been happening as well these past couple of weeks.
Padawan Learner turned 16 this summer, is driving around town by himself, started back to school at 5 out of the 8 periods (and is picking up a 6th period geometry class starting on Monday) and has been pleased with his newfound freedom. It’s a little weird, but we’re both enjoying the break from each other 24/7. He’s very 16, and I’m definitely a mom. Clashes have ensued. He’s talked about getting a job and working toward becoming independent sooner rather than later. It could be a good idea, but we’ll see how much effort he puts into meeting that goal. As you know quite well, there’s more to being a grownup than earning an income.
PL went to two different camps this summer, a week long half day parkour camp in Boulder. So PL got to participate in one of his most favorite activities ever AND we got to visit with our nephew who just moved into the area a few months earlier. I think he enjoyed our visit too since he was forced to learn first hand about lots of great restaurants in the area. PL also went to a week long overnight camp (his first experience with that type of program) for trampoline and double mini in Michigan, so Dad Windu and I were able to visit some old friends from different parts of Michigan – including some that we hadn’t been able to see for years.
To round the summer out, our niece married, rather unexpectedly but apparently happily, and we were all able to gather once again as an extended family (minus 3) for a long weekend. But it seems that with joy comes pain, and this weekend was no different – DW’s co-worker was in a motorcycle-car accident on the way home the same day we left for MI and was airlifted to a hospital near us. Thankfully he had on his leathers and a helmet (a rarity in Iowa). Still, he has two broken legs, a broken arm, and bleeding in the brain (now stopped), but he survived the first night (a major event) and is on the mend. He is such a sweetheart and such a fighter. I’ve been able to go sit with him in the mornings while his wife gets their four kids off on two different school busses (two hours apart!) so that he doesn’t have to wake up alone. The good drugs are giving us really fun conversations. It’s so nice seeing his bruises go down day after day, but it’s heartbreaking to see the pain that goes along with all the things that will ultimately make him better – multiple surgeries and their subsequent swelling most of all. Send any extra good thoughts along to JerBear.
So there you have it. Sorry for making you wait for an update.
Darth Vader: “What is thy bidding, my master?”
Emperor: “There is a great disturbance in the Force.”
Darth Vader: “I have felt it.”
Emperor: “We have a new enemy, Luke Skywalker.”
Darth Vader: “Yes, my master.”
Emperor: “He could destroy us.”
Darth Vader: “He’s just a boy. Obi-Wan can no longer help him.”
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Ah, but the Emperor knew what Darth Vader had not yet fully begun to grasp. The acquisition of knowledge is a powerful ally against the Dark Side of life.
Padawan Learner’s first year of high school is moving along, and I find that I need to cull the homeschooling shelves again. That can only mean one thing, a few more additions to the Watto’s Junk Shop page. If you see anything you’d like to claim, please just leave me a comment on that page and I’ll forward it to you promptly.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have received cheap and free curriculum from other homeschoolers over the years, and I’m glad to keep the generousity humming along. With this many books involved, a little help with shipping would be appreciated – if you can swing it. If you’re in a bit of a tight spot though, just let me know. I’ve been in that boat before and remember the relief that came when our curriculum needs fell into place.
Note: Comments have been re-opened on that page. Sorry for the mix-up.
Palpatine: “You don’t need guidance, Anakin. In time, you will learn to trust your feelings. Then, you will be invincible. I have said it many times, you are the most gifted Jedi I have ever met.”
Anakin: “Thank you, Your Excellency.”
Palpatine: “I see you becoming the greatest of all the Jedi, Anakin. Even more powerful than Master Yoda.”
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
There’s nothing like knowing your kid is off doing something important that you have absolutely NO control over. Not that I have control issues or anything. Me? No, never. Oi vey. I’m a right regular basket case this morning.
Pet Shop Boys, OMD, Modern English, (vintage) U2, New Order, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Cure, Men Without Hats, INXS - I’m filling myself up with the comfort music of my high school and university years on Pandora Radio to keep myself sane. OK, I’ve just seriously dated myself. If I end up cutting my hair asymmetrically and dying it flame red, you’ll know why. Seriously, I really, really want to have flame read hair again. I blame that mostly on Ramona from Scott Pilgrim vs. the World though. (I’m also feeling compelled to dance with several of the songs as they play though, so daily exercise? Check.)
And tea, I’m drinking vats of tea: Santa’s Secret from my dear friend, Eileen Cook. This may or may not be a good idea as it’s packed full of caffeine and has real, miniature candy canes pieces scattered through out the mix, but that’s not going to stop me. I received a Saeco Electric Water Kettle for Christmas and Ho Boy! that thing rocks. Super fast water from the tap to 150-boiling in moments, and with the measurements on the side I can measure out just how much water I’m going to need.
Padawan Learner is taking the first half of his very first mid-term exam today, the verbal Italian segment. I spent all last night saying, “Shouldn’t you be studying for that Italian test?” only to keep hearing, “No, it’s under control.” He glanced over his notes, made a few pretty sounding utterances (strange, I know, but I really miss hearing those guttural G’s from his Dutch-language days), and watching an episode each of The Big Bang Theory and CSI before going to bed. Who IS this child and how could he have ever come from Dad Windu’s and my DNA? I was a compulsive study-freak in school and I’m pretty sure DW was too. I kept thinking – but thankfully not screaming out – “What the blazes does that have to do with anything? ” In the end, I went and finished up my latest library find (Death of a Valentine ) in the bathtub.
I really don’t have reason to worry too much, PL is doing well in his Energy and Italian classes, but I think one of the underlying reasons is that I feel a fair bit of pressure due to the fact that this is his first leap into the unknown of what is commonly referred to as “real school” by family and friends that were not terribly homeschool-friendly in the first place. This semester has felt like it is, in their eyes (and I fully admit that I could be completely projecting my own insecurities onto others here), the proof in the pudding of homeschooling in general and of our homeschool family in particular. How about you other homeschool to traditional school or duel-enrollment folk? Did you experience this the first time one of your kids started thinking inside the educational box?
OK, on to other things now. Like those dust bunnies lurking in the bathroom and under the beds. Time to slay them all.
JerJerrod: “I assure you, Lord Vader, my men are working as fast as they can.”
Darth Vader: “Perhaps I can find new ways to motivate them.”
Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi
If any of you are using or considering either the Biology: Visualizing Life or Prentice Hall Physical Science: Concepts in Action With Earth and Space Science (with or without the Earth and Space Science component) textbooks, you might be interested in reading further. If not, I’ll turn my head while you click the hateful X in the corner… *sniff*
I love science and find it fascinating, but it’s not my background (“Boys and girls, can you spell English and Counseling Degrees?”) so I’m scouring the Internet daily for relevent materials to clarify these topics for Padawan Learner. It occurred to me that, since I’m keeping a log of our daily lessons online at The Jedi Academy so PL can start work independently as needed and for future transcript needs, there might be others who would be interested in following along as well – and saving themselves the effort (and occassional hair-pulling) of duplication.
Generally, I try to find materials and videos online, but I also include a few Netflix movies. Those resources fall more frequently in the History category, but there are a few science-related ones that we’ve put in our queue. They could, perhaps, be found through your local library, or simply ignored, depending on the library system’s depth and breadth.
This should also go a long way toward explaining why things have been so quiet here lately. I’m a rather poor multi-tasker.
So… if you’re interested, you’re welcome to follow along – either this year or in the future. To science!
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